Putative behavioral history effects and aggression maintained by escape from therapists.

Differentially higher rates of aggression in treatment sessions occurred in the presence of two staff members who had previously worked with the participant at another facility. Adding an edible reinforcer for compliance and the absence of aggression in sessions conducted by these two staff members decreased aggression to rates similar to those obtained with less familiar therapists. Results suggest that embedding positive reinforcement within a demand context may reduce the aversiveness of therapists correlated with a history of demand situations.

The failure of feedback on alcohol impairment to reduce impaired driving.

We examined the effects of rules to govern drinking, individual feedback on blood alcohol concentration (BAC), and public posting of group data on impaired driving on the incidence of impaired driving. Level of impairment was determined from breath samples taken from tavern patrons. Following baseline, an intervention package consisting of (a) cards to guide patrons in pacing their drinking to stay under the legal limit, (b) individual feedback on BAC, and (c) posted group feedback on the percentage of patrons driving while impaired the preceding week was introduced in two taverns. Results indicated that the intervention package did not reduce the percentage of impaired drivers departing either tavern. The addition of a brief intensive police enforcement program directed at impaired driving produced a short-term reduction in impaired driving.

Behavior of injured and uninjured children and their parents in a simulated hazardous setting.

Compared the behavior of parents and their previously injured children with parents and their uninjured children in unstructured play and distracted parent conditions. Injured children were more disruptive, more active, and had more contacts with hazards, whereas uninjured children had more appropriate behavior. Parents of injured children had lower rates of play activities. Observable classes of parent and child behaviors amenable to change were associated with a history of child injury. Further study is needed to assess the use of safe and unsafe behavior as proxy measures for injuries and to identify functional classes of safe and unsafe behavior for which active strategies can be developed to prevent children's injuries.

The Self-Injury Trauma (SIT) Scale: a method for quantifying surface tissue damage caused by self-injurious behavior.

A method is described for classifying and quantifying surface tissue damage caused by self-injurious behavior. The Self-Injury Trauma Scale permits differentiation of self-injurious behavior according to topography, location of the injury on the body, type of injury, number of injuries, and estimate of severity. Fifty pairs of independently scored records were subjected to interrater reliability analyses, and the following mean (median) percentage agreement scores were obtained: overall agreement, 97% (98%); location of injury, 99% (100%); type of injury, 96% (100%); number of injuries, 89% (100%); and severity of injury, 94% (100%). Percentage agreement also was calculated for three summary scores: Number Index, 90%; Severity Index, 92%; and Estimate of Current Risk, 100%. Potential applications and limitations of the scale are discussed.

Large-scale reductions in speeding and accidents in Canada and Israel: a behavioral ecological perspective.

We assessed the effects of posted feedback and warning ticket programs on speeding and accidents in two cities. In Experiment 1, speeding feedback signs were effective even when 10 were used in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, and reductions in speeding were associated with reductions in accidents. The effectiveness of the signs was correlated with the number of intersections and residences within 0.5 km beyond them, and the signs had no effect on untreated streets. In Experiment 2, posted feedback and a warning program reduced speeding and accidents on 14 streets in Haifa, Israel.

Feedback interventions and driving speed: A parametric and comparative analysis.

Five experiments were conducted to assess the effects of several variables on the efficacy of feedback in reducing driving speed. Experiment 1 systematically varied the criterion used to define speeding, and results showed that the use of a lenient criterion (20 km/hr over the speed limit), which allowed for the posting of high percentages of drivers not speeding, was more effective in reducing speeding than the use of a stringent criterion (10 km/hr over the speed limit). In Experiment 2 an analysis revealed that posting feedback reduced speeding on a limited access highway and the effects persisted to some degree up to 6 km. Experiments 3 and 4 compared the effectiveness of an unmanned parked police vehicle (Experiment 3) and a police air patrol speeding program (Experiment 4) with the feedback sign and determined whether the presence of either of these enforcement variables could potentiate the efficacy of the sign. The results of both experiments demonstrated that although the two enforcement programs initially produced larger effects than the feedback sign, the magnitude of their effect attenuated over time. Experiment 5 compared the effectiveness of a traditional enforcement program with a warning program which included handing out a flier providing feedback on the number and types of accidents occuring on the road during the past year. This experiment demonstrated that the warning program produced a marked reduction in speeding and the traditional enforcement program did not. Furthermore, the warning program and a feedback sign together produced an even greater reduction in speeding than either alone.

An analysis of some variables influencing the effectiveness of reprimands.

Although several studies have shown that social reprimands can function as punishers, no study reported to data has isolated any of the factors influencing reprimand efficacy. Three experiments were conducted to investigate several factors. Experiment 1 used an alternating treatments design and was conducted on two elementary school boys, one of whom was in a special education class. Results showed that verbal reprimands delivered with eye contact and firm grasp of the student's shoulders reduced disruptive behavior to a greater extent than did verbal reprimands delivered without eye contact and grasp. Both types of reprimand were more effective than a baseline condition during which disruptive behavior was ignored. Experiment 2 also used an alternating treatments design and was conducted on one elementary school boy. Results demonstrated that reprimands delivered from one meter away were considerably more effective than reprimands delivered from seven meters away. Experiment 3 used a reversal design and was conducted on two pairs of elementary school children, one a pair of boys and the other a pair of girls. Results demonstrated that reprimands delivered to just one member of the pair reduced the disruptive behavior of both members of the pair. Thus, the effects of reprimands "spilled" over to nonreprimanded students.

A comparison of the effects of posted feedback and increased police surveillance on highway speeding.

A counterbalanced, reversal design was used to compare the effectiveness of posted feedback and increased police surveillance in reducing speeding on two urban highways. Drivers' speeds were measured using a concealed radar unit. During public posting, a large highway sign, which listed the percentage of drivers not speeding during the preceding week and the best record to date, was erected on each street. Use of the feedback sign alternated with periods of baseline and periods of increased police surveillance and ticketing. During increased police surveillance, highly visible, stationary police radar patrols were established along the highways for either 30 min or 60 min per day, 5 days per week. Results indicated that although public posting was highly effective in reducing the percentage of speeding drivers, increased police surveillance was not. Thus, since the feedback sign required only 30 min per week to maintain, public posting was at least 10 times more efficient in controlling speeding than was police surveillance and ticketing.

Reducing elevator energy use: A comparison of posted feedback and reduced elevator convenience.

The effects of two different procedures for reducing elevator energy use were assessed using a multiple-baseline design. In the first procedure, feedback about the amount of energy consumed by the elevators each week was posted on each elevator door. Later, signs advocating the use of stairs to save energy and improve health were posted next to the feedback signs. In the second procedure, the time required to travel between floors was increased by adding a delay to the elevator door closing mechanisms. Results indicated that neither feedback alone nor feedback plus educational signs reduced the amount of energy consumed by the elevators. However, use of the door delay reduced consumption by one-third in all elevators.A second experiment replicated the effect of the door delay on energy consumption and, in addition, demonstrated that the door delay also produced a reduction in the number of persons using the elevator. The second experiment also showed that, following an initial period during which a full delay was in effect, a gradual reduction of the delay interval resulted in continued energy conservation. Reduced convenience as a general strategy for energy conservation is discussed.

A comparison of the effects of fixed and variable ratio schedules of reinforcement on the behavior of deaf children.

The performance of all five students in an adjustment class for deaf children was compared under fixed and variable ratio schedules of reinforcement. During the fixed ratio (FR) condition, students earned checks if they were attentive and did not engage in disruptive behavior. These checks could be exchanged for the opportunity to draw a prize from a grab bag. During the variable ratio (VR) condition, they earned a draw from the grab bag according to a variable ratio schedule with a mean ratio equal to the value of the preceding FR schedule. During the VR condition, students visually attended more and engaged in disruptive behavior less often than during the FR condition. The number of math problems completed per minute was also higher during the VR condition although no specific consequences were applied to math performance.